WYD Cross to visit tsunami-hit Gizo

Published: 02 April 2007

In a poignant reminder of its significance, the World Youth Day Cross
is due to journey to the tsunami-struck Solomon Islands diocese of Gizo
next week - and organisers say they are determined that the visit to
the grief-stricken community will go ahead.

The
Gizo diocese is due to receive the World Youth Day Cross and Icon of
Our Lady next Thursday as part of the holy symbols' journey to Sydney
for next year's World Youth Day (WYD08), the Westender reports.

WYD08
organisers in Sydney say they are saddened that at least 25 people have
been killed and thousands left homeless by the earthquake and tsunami.

The
Bishop of Gizo, Dominican Bernard O'Grady - one of the co-consecrators
of WYD08 Coordinator Bishop Anthony Fisher - visited the World Youth
Day offices in Sydney only last week.

Bishop Fisher said he
hoped the Cross and Icon would still be able to visit the
grief-stricken community of Gizo - for whom the suffering on the cross
and the hope of the resurrection would now have a new meaning.

"It is still our intention that the WYD Cross and Icon make it to Gizo," Bishop Fisher said.

"Our
Catholic Education Office here in Sydney has a special relationship
with Gizo diocese as does the Dominican Order to which I belong.

"We
had already decided to provide special assistance so that the Cross and
Icon could travel to Gizo and now that this tragedy has occurred we are
more determined than ever.

"The Cross and Icon have travelled to
every inhabited continent, carrying the Catholic Church's message of
reconciliation and hope to places in need of hope - most recently
through Africa and now through Asia and the Pacific," Bishop Anthony
said.

"The Cross is a symbol of Christ's solidarity with all those who suffer.

"In
this Holy Week and particularly at this tragic time in Gizo, the World
Youth Day Cross and Icon are special signs of Australia's prayerful
support for the people of the Solomon Islands."

The Bishop asked
young Australians to join him in prayer for the people of the Solomon
Islands and to contribute to the Caritas tsunami appeal.